Zutara One-shots 2015
by Felicity Schriver
Summary: A series of one-shots for Zutara month! Fluff. A little bit of angst. Enjoy :)


**It's Zutara Month! I'm going to (try to) upload a one-shot every day this December, with my prompts coming from the Facebook page Zutara. Today's prompt is Secret Lovers. I hope you enjoy!**

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Katara curled up in the long grass that covered the hillside, breathing in the air of freshly fallen rain as she waited for the sun to rise. This was her favourite feeling; sitting on the moist ground with mud under her fingertips, soaking in the serenity of the moments before dawn. The others were camped on the other side of the hill, still sleeping soundly (and noisily, in the case with Toph). She was alone, just her, the dawn, and the dew. A sense of satisfaction filled her chest.

A warm hand graced her shoulder. Katara gasped, surprised, and whirled around to see who was intruding on her solitude. She breathed a sigh of relief as she saw it was Zuko. "Oh, it's just you," she said, sprawling herself out on the dewy grass. She smiled brightly up at him, her eyes glistening with his presence.

Zuko raised his remaining eyebrow. "'Just you'? I thought I meant a lot more to you than that, especially after last night."

"You scared me," Katara said. Her smile faultered slightly. "You shouldn't be here anyway."

"Why not?" Zuko's voice lowered to a whisper, gruff with confusion.

Katara lifted herself up from the ground and faced Zuko. "We can't be seen together."

Zuko looked over his shoulder, as if he was expecting Aang to be standing right behind him. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and asked again, "Why not?"

Katara could feel the heat rushing to her face, the kind that brought tears. She turned away quickly, so as to hide the only water she couldn't control. "It's just...Aang loves me so much...And I love him too...but not in that way. And it would crush him, it would hurt him to the point where I'm not sure if he'd be okay again. I've seen him have pain, Zuko. I've seen what happens to him when he feels that pain. And I don't know if I can watch him go through that again. I...I can't."

Katara expected Zuko to argue with her, or worse, leave in silence. But he was so full of surprises. His arms wrapped her in a hug from behind and he brushed her ear with his lips. He inhaled her scent, the smell of cooked food, wet stone, and...home. "It'll be okay," he whispered. "We can stay secret, for now. I understand."

"Thank you," Katara breathed, almost inaudibly. She turned her head a fraction, just enough for Zuko to bring his lips to hers, burying her in a kiss. The rising sun glowed upon their embrace.

"You're so beautiful when you're worried," Zuko said, showing one of his rare smiles. Katara laughed, pecked him on the cheek, and twirled herself out of his arms.

"I need to go make breakfast," she said, climbing back to the top of the hill.

"You know we can't keep it secret forever, though," Zuko called up after her. "If we're going to continue seeing each other."

Katara simply showed him a tender smile, leaving his heart to melt in its sweetness, his knees weakening with the fear of the unknown. He watched her as she disappeared over the hill.

He stared at the sun as it slowly ascended up the horizon, turning the landscape into warm hues of pink, orange, and crimson. He could feel a flame growing inside him, one he had never felt before. A similar flame had risen within him when he was with Mai, but that had flickered out long before he could fully realize its power.

He produced a flame in his hand and watched it dance playfully in the morning light. It felt like a part of him, and it quivered to the same beat of his heart. He had never felt such of a connection with his element before. And then the realization hit him; Katara had made him complete. Katara, without even knowing it, had helped him connect to his element like no one had ever done. Yes, the Dragons had taught him much, but this...this could not be taught. He closed his hand gently, letting the fire turn to a wisp of smoke. He followed Katara's path back up the hill, wondering what would become of them, and hoping, against every hope, that it would be as he said; everything would be okay.

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 **Please tell me what you think in a comment! Happy Zutara Month :)**


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